Apple not amused by Steve Jobs parody on Twitter

A Twitter account parodying Apple Chief Executive Steve Jobs with phony statements about the company's products has prompted a complaint from the iPhone maker to the popular social networking service.

The account @ceoSteveJobs is one of the most popular parody accounts on Twitter, with more than 370,000 followers. The author of the account was contacted by Twitter this week to let him know that he is in violation of the service's parody policy.

According to TechCrunch, Twitter received a "valid report," or complaint, on behalf of the person being parodied, or someone legally authorized to speak on their behalf. The service was notified that the @ceoSteveJobs account is in violation of Twitter's official parody policy.

Twitter's policy requires that a username make it clear the account is not legitimate, using words like "not," "fake," or "fan." It also suggests that the bio for the account state that it is a parody, something the owner of the account did after receiving the complaint.

"More than meets the i," the revised bio now reads. "As you should expect from a parody account."

The owner of the account identified himself as Christof, and reportedly said he will also revise the name of the account to comply with Twitter's rules. But he also said they believe a name change on the account would make it less funny, as "most parody doesn't blatantly label itself."

The phony account lampoons Apple stories in the news, including the iPhone alarm clock bug that made headlines this week. "All mobile phones have alarm problems," the fake CEO said on Monday. "Press conference Tuesday."

Commenting on Thursday's launch of the new Mac App Store, the account proclaimed that Apple has "created for the first time in all history, a garden of pure ideology." Another post this week reads: "The iPad 2 will blow you away. Literally. It has a shotgun built in."

Apple's legal department has been protective of the company's CEO, and last month halted the sale of figurines using Jobs' likeness on eBay. The items showed Jobs, in his trademark blue jeans and black mock turtleneck, holding an iPhone and standing atop a white Apple logo.